Bangladesh Steps up Efforts to Save Tigers

     As the tiger continues to face critical threats to its survival（生存）, yet another country is joining the global battle to save the big cat.

    An estimated 300 to 500 Royal Bengal tigers roam the sprawling¹, 6,000-square-kilometer mangrove² forest in the Sunderbans area of Bangladesh.

    There are no studies, but conservationists fear that the Royal Bengal tigers' numbers are diminishing as they are targeted by poachers and struggle to find food in their shrinking habitat.

    Now, authorities hope that a 300-member force being raised to police the dense³, tropical swamps of Sunderbans in the huge delta⁴ on the Bay of Bengal will be able to deter⁵ wildlife smugglers.

    Equipped with modern weapons and high speed patrol boats procured⁶ with the help of a $36 million World Bank loan, Bangladesh's new Wildlife Crime Control Unit will penetrate⁷ deep into the jungles to track threats from poachers.

    Those threats are growing. In February, one man was arrested with three tiger skins and other parts - the largest haul in three decades.

    Bangladesh’s chief conservationist, Tapan Kumar Dey, says lack of training and equipment had hampered⁸ efforts to prevent poaching, but he hopes this will now change. He says besides policing the forests, wildlife tracking units will be established throughout the country.

    “We will involve all law enforcement agencies, police, customs, border security force and other agencies in illegal trade of wildlife. We are going to post some officers in seaport⁹, in airport and also some in the point through which illegal wildlife is trafficking throughout the region," he said.

    Conservationists say depleting¹⁰ food reserves also pose a huge challenge to the Royal Bengal tiger.

    The head of the Wildlife Trust of Bangladesh, Anwarul Islam, says deer and other prey¹¹ which tigers depend on are being increasingly hunted down by villagers on the periphery¹² of the Sunderbans. This forces tigers to emerge out of the forest in search for food, and it is estimated that three are killed on average every year when they stray into villages.

    Islam says an initiative has been launched to tranquilize（安定） tigers that enter villages and put them back into forests - a practice already followed in neighboring India. He says a 24-hour hotline has been established to alert wildlife officials and volunteers about tigers that come out of forests.

    “In 29 villages around the Sunderbans we now have 200 village tiger response teams, and they are volunteers," said Islam. "Once stray tigers come into the villages, their main job is to manage the crowd, that is the main problem. Once people know there is a tiger, thousands of people flock together, they come out with sticks and what not….We need to develop confidence among local people that forest department and their partners have capacity to manage stray tigers.”

    But this is not always an easy task. In February, conservationists celebrated¹³ when, for the first time, a tiger that strayed out of the forest was tranquilized and put back into the wild. But the same animal emerged out of the forest again, and was killed by villagers.

    Wildlife officials are calling for stiffer penalties and longer jail terms for killing¹⁴ tigers. They hope a tough, new law will be drafted this year and help curb¹⁵ poaching of an animal that is worth millions of dollars when it is killed.

    The Sunderbans forest straddles India and Bangladesh, and is among the most densely¹⁶ populated tiger habitats in the world, with about one tiger every 20 square kilometers.

    Conservationists say Bangladesh can make a critical contribution to the fate of the tiger, whose numbers worldwide have plummeted¹⁷ to about 3,200.(本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑)

1 sprawling   

adj.蔓生的，不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 )；蔓延；杂乱无序地拓展；四肢伸展坐着（或躺着）

参考例句：

• He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
• a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇

2 mangrove   

n.(植物)红树，红树林

参考例句：

• It is the world's largest tidal mangrove forest.它是世界上最大的红树林沼泽地。
• Many consider this the most beautiful mangrove forest in all Thailand.许多人认为这里是全泰国最美丽的红树林了。

3 dense   

a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的

参考例句：

• The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。
• The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

4 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

5 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

6 procured   

v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条

参考例句：

• These cars are to be procured through open tender. 这些汽车要用公开招标的办法购买。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• A friend procured a position in the bank for my big brother. 一位朋友为我哥哥谋得了一个银行的职位。 来自《用法词典》

7 penetrate   

v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解

参考例句：

• Western ideas penetrate slowly through the East.西方观念逐渐传入东方。
• The sunshine could not penetrate where the trees were thickest.阳光不能透入树木最浓密的地方。

8 hampered   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions. 恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• So thought every harassed, hampered, respectable boy in St. Petersburg. 圣彼德堡镇的那些受折磨、受拘束的体面孩子们个个都是这么想的。

9 seaport   

n.海港，港口，港市

参考例句：

• Ostend is the most important seaport in Belgium.奥斯坦德是比利时最重要的海港。
• A seaport where ships can take on supplies of coal.轮船能够补充煤炭的海港。

10 depleting   

使大大的减少，使空虚( deplete的现在分词 )； 耗尽，使枯竭

参考例句：

• Regulations are outlawing certain refrigerants, such as chlorofluorocarbons, which contain ozone-depleting chemicals. 随后出台的政策禁用了部分制冷剂，如破坏臭氧层的氟氯碳化合物。
• Aging, being a series of continual losses, can be keenly depleting. 老龄化，作为一个系列的连续亏损，可以清楚地消耗。

11 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

12 periphery   

n.(圆体的)外面；周围

参考例句：

• Geographically, the UK is on the periphery of Europe.从地理位置上讲，英国处于欧洲边缘。
• The periphery of the retina is very sensitive to motion.视网膜的外围对运动非常敏感。

13 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

14 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

15 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

16 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

17 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》